Write to me at maryskole@aol.com

 

Down-to-Earth Bookstore

Book list (a to z)

To order:

 

Contact Down-to-Earth Books

c/o Mary Leue

P.O. Box 488, Ashfield, MA 01330

(413) 628-0227 OR write me at maryskole@aol.com.

 

Shipping and handling costs $2 for the first book, $1 for each additional book. If you order by phone or e-mail, please be sure to include your mailing address and a daytime telephone number in case we need to contact you. Overseas postage is more than the listed amount, of course, $5 for ground mail. Please pay by international money order. Add $10 for airmail. We do not have credit card capability. Thanks for your patience!

 

The following titles are currently available to purchase from our online bookstore. Each of them is also listed on our educational website, www.spinninglobe.net - along with images of their covers, more information, reviews of many of them and an excerpt from the text of each one.

http://www.spinninglobe.net/bookstore.html

 

We will be adding more titles from time to time. By the way, any reader may write a review of any book you read that is on our list - wherever you bought it. Write maryskole@aol.com and we'll include your review! This is a work in progress.

 

Where Geese Become Swans, A YEAR AT BROOK HOLLOW FARM, by Julia Ryan Meservy. A book of moving, insightful essays written by a loving woman who has chosen to become part of a farming family in Ashfield, Massachusetts - detailing a year of her life on the farm and her magical experiences there. Originally published as separate stories in the Ashfield News. $12.00 plus $2 shipping.

 

THE BEEJUM BOOK, by Alice O. Howell. This book lists for $24.95. We sell it for $17.95 plus $2 shipping! This is a glorious, delightful book with great value for both children and adults by a woman who has learned life's greatest lesson - happiness!

THE BIRD OF IMAGINING - Drawings by Children from New York City Public Schools, by Richard Lewis

CHANGING LIVES by Jane Day: Interviews with graduates of the Community School in Camden, Maine. $18.95, reviewed by Mary Leue

CHILDREN'S PAST LIVES: How Past Life Memories Affect Your Child by Carol Bowman; Bantam Books, 1998 356 pp. $12.95, reviewed by Ellen Becker.

CHILDREN'S RIGHTS AND POWER: Charging Up for a New Century, by Mary John, Professor Emerita and former Deputy Vice Chancellor and Dean of the Faculty of Education at the University of Exeter, UK

THE DAISY SUTRA, Conversations with my Dog, by Helen Weaver - an unforgettable love story about the timelessness of the relationship between a woman and her dog. $18.95, reviewed by Mary Leue. See also Helen's website, http://www.daisysutra.com/

 

http://www.spinninglobe.net/bookstore.html

 

DESCHOOLING OUR LIVES, edited by Matt Hern, foreword by Ivan Illich

 

FREE SCHOOLS, FREE PEOPLE, by Ron Miller, president of the Foundation for Educational Renewal and editor of Educational Freedom for a Democratic Society: A Critique of National Standards, Goals and Curriculum.

 

A FREE RANGE CHILDHOOD, Self-Regulation at Summerhill School, by Matthew Appleton

 

FREE SCHOOLS (reissued as) ALTERNATIVE SCHOOLS, by Jonathan Kozol - the definitive work on assessing both the early free schools and the later alternative schools

 

THE GODDESS WITHIN, A Guide to the Eternal Myths that Shape Women's Lives, Jennifer Barker Woolger and Roger Woolger, Ballantine Books, 1989, $16.95, plus $3 shipping.

 

HOW LIKE AN ANGEL CAME I DOWN, Conversations with Children on the Gospels, by A. Bronson Alcott, edited by Alice Howell. $19.95, reviewed by Mary Leue. .. 

 

A LIFE IN SCHOOL, What the Teacher Learned, by Jane Tompkins, professor of literature at Duke University and a leader in the field of academic research into the art of teaching.

 

THE LIVES OF CHILDREN, the Story of the First Street School, by George Dennison - "A classic! " - A.S. Neill $12.95 plus $2 shipping.

LIVING BY WONDER, The Imaginative Life of Childhood, by Richard Lewis, $18.95 $2 shipping.

http://www.spinninglobe.net/bookstore.html

MAKING IT UP AS WE GO ALONG, The Story of the Albany Free School, by Chris Mercogliano, $18.00 plus $2.00 shipping. Foreword by Joseph Chilton Pearce. Reviewed by Herb Kohl. Reviewed by Herb Kohl,by Joseph Chilton Pearce and by David Ruentzel, Teacher magazine. 

MAY YOU NEVER STOP DANCING, A Professor's Letters to his Daughter, by John D. Lawry, St. Mary's Press, Christian Brothers Publication, Winona, MN - qpb, $13.95 plus $2 shipping, reviewed by Mary Leue

MY LIFE AS A TRAVELING HOMESCHOOLER, by Jenifer Goldman, a clear-eyed account by an almost eleven-year-old who traveled with her uncle Jerry Mintz throughout the US - and even into Canada, visiting schools, attending conferences, enjoying life as she learned. Well worth reading.

NO HOMEWORK AND RECESS ALL DAY, Freedom and Democracy in Education, by Jerry Mintz, paperback, $10.95

NO MASTER HIGH OR LOW - Libertarian Education and Schooling 1890-1990, by John Shotton, Libertarian Education (LibEd), UK, publisher, 1997, paperback, $17.00 plus $2 shipping, reviewed by Robin Martin.

OTHER LIVES, OTHER SELVES, A Jungian Psychotherapist Discovers Past Lives, by Roger Woolger, PhD. Doubleday, 1987. pb. $18.95 plus $2 shipping.

REAL EDUCATION, Varieties of Freedom, by David Gribble, Libertarian Education, UK, publisher, 1998, paperback, $17.00 plus $3 shipping, reviewed by Robin Martin.

SAVING THE SAVIOR, by Abubakr Salahuddin, Jammu Press. $14.00.

A SEARCH FOR THE HISTORICAL JESUS, From Apocryphal, Buddhist, Islamic and Sanskrit Sources by Professor Fida Hassnain, $16.50 plus $2 shipping, reviewed by Chris Mercogliano.

SCHOOL DROPOUTS - The Tragedy of America's Under-Educated Youth, by Carlos Bonilla and Jana L. Brazda. $29.95

SCHOOLING FOR HUMANITY - When Big Brother Isn't Watching, by David O. Solmitz (Write me and ask for the price! I don't have it yet. - probably around $18.95). Introduction by Kathleen Kesson, Goddard College Director of Teacher Education,

SUMMERHILL SCHOOL, A New View of Childhood, by A.S. Neill, a new edition by Albert Lamb, $12.95, reviewed by Chris Mercogliano (Note: this cover is from the English edition - the copy I sell is actually the US edition - but this one is prettier, so I'm using it).

THE SCHOOL AROUND US, Twenty-five Years, by Claudia Berman. The story of the Kennebunk, Maine school of that name. $18.95 plus $2 shipping.See Claudia's review by clicking here.

THE UNDERGROUND HISTORY OF EDUCATION, by John Taylor Gatto. Oversize paperback, 412 pages, lavishly illustrated. $30 plus $3 shipping - and worth every nickel! Reviewed by Mary Leue.

WHAT ARE SCHOOLS FOR? - Holistic Education in American Culture, by Ron Miller. $18.95

CHALLENGING THE GIANT: The Best of SKOLE, the Journal of Alternative Education, volumes I-IV $14.95 each, plus shipping $2.00 (pb, 500+ pages each volume), or $40.00 for all four plus shipping and handling $5.00).

 

SKOLE, THE JOURNAL OF ALTERNATIVE EDUCATION, Mary M. Leue, editor. Past issues available, $4 each, plus $2 shipping, reviewed by John Potter.

 

THE WORLD'S GOIN' TO END AT LOONCHTIME, Poems of the Free School Community, volume 1. Pretty amazing! $10.95 plus $2 shipping.

 

http://www.spinninglobe.net/bookstore.html

 

SONGS OF AN EARTH FAMILY, poems of the Free School community, volume two. $10.95 plus $2 shipping. Read the introduction.

 

RUSHING TO EVA, a Pilgrimage in Search of the Great Mother, by Mary Leue. $14.95 plus $2 shipping, reviewed by Ann Mossop.  

 

INDIA JOURNAL, a Pilgrimage toward the Self, $14.95 plus $2 shipping.

 

THE FLYING BIRD BRINGS THE MESSAGE, Lessons from Life, by Mary Leue. $12.95 plue $2 shipping.

 

JESSICA DRAGONETTE'S FIERY BREATH, by Mary Leue - Jessica's adoration of her grand fire-breathing father gets her in big trouble! $9.95

 

LOOKING FOR ONE'S SHADOW AT NOON - Both volumes $15 plue $3 shipping.

Volume 1 - Looking for the Self in Family and Society, $8.95 plus $2 shipping.

.......Volume 2, Finding the Self in School and Community $8.95 plus $2 shipping.

 

THE HERMIT'S HANDBOOK, by Jack Barry, a sensitive and very moving journal of a year spent by the author completing and living in a beautifully crafted house he had built in a tree over a swamp in the hills of western Massachusetts

 

GROWING UP DEMOCRATIC, by Jerry Mintz, accounts of Jerry's important work in democratizing schools by giving students an authentic voice in governance and curriculum, a new anthology. We are hoiping to make this into an e-book, which will be available next October. In the meanwhile, you may read several of Jerry's essays and stories by clicking on the bookcover image, and then continuing from there to the next one, etc. It's not a real book, in other words, but erry's OTHER one is - he called it "No Homework and Recess all Day". Scroll up to the "N's" and click on the cover. It's a great book. P.S., the young guy on the red cover of my non-book is my grandson Ian.

 

http://www.spinninglobe.net/bookstore.html

 

DOWN-TO-EARTH CHILDREN'S STORIES

AMY AND GOGO - a small child and her grandmother spend the day together $8.95

 

ITS-GOT-TO-BE - a story for very small children - all about ducklings - and one special duckling $8.95

 

HOW ABOUT FLYING KITES? - a delightful children's story about a boy and his grandmother $8.95

THE DRAGON - a new and exciting kite for David to fly $8.95

DAVID'S KITE, by Phyllis Loomis - more kite stories $8.95

YELLOW BRAND BIODIESEL - produced by Jory Hearst and Lauren Jorgensen and narrated by Tom Leue,this video tape includes the origins of biodiesel fuel, the history of Tom's production of biodiesel, a guided tour of the plant and an explanation of how the fuel is made. Click on the tape image (above left) if you wish to view the factory online. $25 plus shipping $2.

 

 WHO'S COUNTING? Marilyn Waring on Sex. Lies and Global Economics - Bullfrog Films - A great video with both humor and truth from Marilyn, who became a pioneering MP in Australia in order to have an impact on what needs to happen on our troubled earth! - $20 plus $2 shipping.

 

http://www.spinninglobe.net/bookstore.html

 

Shipping and handling costs $2 for the first book, $1 for each additional book. If you order by phone or e-mail, please be sure to include your mailing address and a daytime telephone number in case we need to contact you. Overseas postage is more than the listed amount, of course, $5 for ground mail. Please pay by international money order. Add $10 for airmail. We do not have credit card capability. Thanks for your patience!

 

Down-to-Earth Books has been operating, both as a publishing house and a bookstore, since the mid-seventies. Our particular emphasis has always been on the implications of various models of education, social customs and attitudes upon family and community - and especially on children.

 

Our bookstore online offers works by many authors who have thought deeply about these issues and who speak in the tongue of real experience. We add to the list from time to time, and welcome comment and/or suggestions for additional titles.

THE JOURNAL FOR LIVING, a Quarterly for Empowering Families (formerly the Journal of Family Life).

Nominated for the Utne Reader 1995 Alternative Press Award for New Titles, now in its seventh year. Quoting from the review in Utne Reader by Andrea Martin: "...In this era of so-called family values, misplaced religious ideals, and misused statistics, people involved with the Albany, New York, Free School have come forward with a magazine offering an outlook that is both truer and richer. The Free School people have been walking their talk of respect for and faith in human nature since the 1970's, and they offer companionship and support to all who treasure family life as an opportunity for authenticity and growth..."

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Subscriptions to The Journal for Living may be ordered by e-mailing Frank at airnokker@aol.com or calling him at (518) 465-0582. Back issues may be ordered from the bookstore by e-mailing Mary at maryskole@aol.com or calling her at 413-628-0227. Each issue costs $6.. Please add $2 for first issue, 50 cents for each additional issue for shipping. Be sure to include your mailing address. Thanks!

---

Write to me at maryskole@aol.com

A FREE RANGE CHILDHOOD - Self-Regulation at Summerhill School, by Matthew Appleton, Solomon Press, supported by The Foundation for Educational Renewal. This is a wonderful book about a wonderful school! Matt Appleton was a houseparent at Surnmerhill for nine years, has lectured and written extensively on his experiences and works as a psychotherapist and craniosacral therapist in England. Click here for a review. $18.95.

CHALLENGING THE GIANT- the Best of SKOLE, the Journal of Alternative Education, volumes I-IV $14.95 each, plus shipping $2.00 (pb, 500+ pages each volume), or $40.00 for all four plus shipping and handling $5.00). Click here for reviews of vols. 1 & 2 by Claudia Berman and vols. 3 & by Emanuel Pariser.

CHANGING LIVES, by Jane Day: Interviews with graduates of the Community School in Camden, Maine. $18.95 Reviewed by Mary Leue

CHILDREN'S PAST LIVES: How Past Life Memories Affect Your Child by Carol Bowman Bantam Books, 1998 356 pp. $12.95 Reviewed by Ellen Becker.

THE DAISY SUTRA, her book and website, by Helen Weaver - an unforgettable love story about the timelessness of the relationship between a woman and her dog. $18.95 Reviewed by Mary Leue.

THE FLYING BIRD BRINGS THE MESSAGE, Lessons from Life, by Mary Leue. $12.95 plue $2 shipping.

THE GODDESS WITHIN, A Guide to the Eternal Myths that Shape Women's Lives, Jennifer Barker Woolger and Roger Woolger, Ballantine Books, 1989, $16.95, plus $3 shipping. Click here for a review taken from the book cover.

HOW LIKE AN ANGEL CAME I DOWN, conversations between Bronson Alcott and his children at the Temple School, edited by Alice Howell. $19.95 Reviewed by Mary Leue.

INDIA JOURNAL, a Pilgrimage toward the Self. $14.95 plus $2 shipping.

LOOKING FOR ONE'S SHADOW AT NOON:

volume 1, Looking for the Self in Family and Society. $8.95

volume 2, Finding the Self in School and Community. $8.95

Each volume plus $2 shipping. Both volumes $15 plue $3 shipping.

 

MAKING IT UP AS WE GO ALONG: The Story of the Albany Free School, by Chris Mercogliano,qpb, $25.00 plus $2.00 shipping. Foreword by Joseph Chilton Pearce. Reviewed by Herb Kohl. Click here for a view of the cover, Kohl's review, and /or here for two more reviews by Joseph Chilton Pearce and by David Ruentzel, Teacher magazine. 

 

MAY YOU NEVER STOP DANCING - A Professor's Letters to his Daughter, by John D. Lawry, St. Mary's Press, Christian Brothers Publication, Winona, MN - qpb, $13.95 plus $2 shipping. Click here for a review by Mary Leue

 

 

 

 Educational Publications:

 

........  

....Challenging the Giant................SKOLE..........Making it Up As We Go Along

 

Down-to-Earth Books has been operating, both as a publishing house and a bookstore, since the mid-seventies. Our particular emphasis has always been on the implications of various models of education, social customs and attitudes upon family and community - and especially on children.

 

Our bookstore online offers works by many authors who have thought deeply about these issues and who speak in the tongue of real experience. We add to the list from time to time, and welcome comment and/or suggestions for additional titles. The Journal of Family Life, a Quarterly for Empowering Families:

(now The Journal for Living)

..., .

........Couples. ........ Father Sky............Culture ....Having Children

Contact

Down-to-Earth Books

c/o Mary Leue

P.O. Box 488,

Ashfield, MA 01330

(413) 628-0227 OR write me at

maryskole@aol.com.

If you order by phone or e-mail, please be sure to include your mailing address and a daytime telephone number so that we may contact you to arrange for payment. We do not have credit card capability. Thanks for your patience! Overseas postage is more than the listed amount, of course, $5 for ground mail. Please pay by international money order. Add $10 for airmail.

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